Matt Moneymaker

Matt Moneymaker developed an interest in bigfoot/sasquatch research during his time at UCLA in the 1980s. He conducted investigations, including a multi-witness sighting in the Ventura County mountains where he encountered fresh bigfoot tracks and heard distinctive wood knock sounds. Later, while attending law school in Ohio in the mid-1990s, Moneymaker continued his research, networking with local experts to gather information about bigfoot encounters in eastern Ohio. This work culminated in a face-to-face bigfoot encounter in a swampy wildlife refuge in Portage County in July 1994.

Following this encounter, Matt Moneymaker established the Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) in 1995. The BFRO’s website became a central hub for collecting and publishing sighting reports from across the United States and Canada, creating a clearinghouse for information and witness contacts. This platform led to numerous requests from journalists and television producers, eventually resulting in Moneymaker’s appearances in TV documentaries and unscripted series focused on bigfoot research. His television career began with ‘Mysterious Encounters’ on OLN Channel.

His television presence expanded significantly with ‘Finding Bigfoot’ on Animal Planet Channel, which premiered on May 29, 2011. On the show, Moneymaker, along with a team of researchers, investigated potential evidence for Bigfoot across various locations, including international searches for similar cryptids like the Yowie in Australia and the Yeti in Nepal. The series concluded its initial run with its 100th episode on May 27, 2018, but returned for a two-hour special, ‘Finding Bigfoot: The Search Continues,’ in February 2021, available on Discovery+ and later airing on Animal Planet.